The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1887-06-01
FUNERALS IN ENGLAND.
SIGNS OF WOE ACCORDING TO THE
PREVAILING CUSTOMS.


Hired Weepers on the Doorsteps-
Extravagant Floral Displays-Points
of Etiquette-AnU ndertaker's Quaint
Neutrality-suspicious. of the Queen OF
the Costermongers.
London, Letter in Philadelphia Record.
Directly the breath leaves the body the
window blinds, usually inside Venetian
shutters, are pulled down, the windows of
the room where the death occurred being
left slightly open, however, from the top to
hermit the spirit to take its celestial flight.
This latter is an old superstition, a very
poetic one In the country the house door
is left ajar on the day of the fu-
neral until after the mourners' return
because" they say, ito shut the
door would be to shut out the corpse. To
leave it open is to show welcome to the
spirits return" In the country, notably in
Hampshire and Somersetshire, the usual
shroud of the simpler village folk is COM
nosed of white cotton wadding, shaped
about the body dressed in ordinary under
garments The coffin is borne on the
shoulders of friends to the cemetery, the
other mourners following on foot to the
grave.
Naturally such customs are impracticable
in city like London. Only intimate friends.
but not the more immediate family, accom-
pany the body to its burial place. The leave
taking of the family is private Other
friends assemble in the drawing-rooms
There is no service until reaching the chapel
in the cemetery, where one takes place, if at
all, as supplementary to a final one at the
grave itself Only when the deceased has
been a great public man is there service in
the church he attended in life, or in st.
Paul's, the Abbey or other noted sacred edi-
fee. This service is called mourning
function" Memorial services, on the other
hand, for noted man or woman may occur
simultaneously in many churches.
There are no Grape streamers on the door
knocker or bell-hsndle as IN Philadelphia or
other cities in America. The blinds are
down, the knocker muffied and frequently
straw is placed in the street for half block
to deaden the sound of vehicles. 1t is also
an unwritten courtesy of the neighbors to
draw their blinds on the day of the death
and ON that of the funeral. Thus we know
that the king of Terrors" holds his grim,
dumb court within the house with drawn
blinds and mufied knocker.
Even during the last four years changes
in funeral customs have taken place Some
people still rigidly keep to the old ways.
Therefore if we should not at first be sure of
death, the presence on the doorsteps of two
lugubrious persons would prove it, These.
relieved with other two at intervals. stand
one on each side of the door to weep until
the period shall be ended between the death
at the removal to the cemetery. These paid
mourners are ''mutes.n Their business is to
weep, and they perform it faithfully. In
solemn black garments, hands in black
gloves, broad streamers of Grape called
"weepers" about their hats, they ply hand
Ioro 70 bof,
gloomy. When there are no pasSers-by they
discuss the local politics or their own affairs.
Directly some one heaves in sight up go the
handkerchiefs. The ends of their noses are
suspiciously red. One feels that gin is the
cause of such perpetual flow of salt water
from their weak, reddish eyes 1t is, despite
the solemn cause of their employment, ex-
ceedingly droll They look like pen and ink
sketches, and thsir marionet woe is CHASTITY
in its grotesqueness. Strange that this Gus
tom OF the early Romans should have sur
Uved until the nineteenth century. Many
Of the Roman rites have fingered on these
isles of Great Britain, once so extensively
used as Roman encampments. "The funeral
baked meats" of sacred as well as of profane
,hstory-these are still prepared Poor, in
deed, the London family which fails to have
banquet provided on the funeral day for
the assembled friends.
So widespread is the horror concerning be-
ing buried alive that bodies are kept here
longer than in America 1t is regarded as
barbarous to keep the body less than a week.
and ten days is more frequently the time
VI course in cases of contagious disease the
authorities enforce speedy and private
burial. Perhaps the humid atmosphere is |
not conducive to modification. Certain it |
Is that less ice is used here, if used at all, |
than In America on these melancholy occa-
sions.
The funeral flowers are even more extrav- |
agantly used than in America, and not alone |
white flowers but all the delicate hued bios |
SONS pertaining to the season. Besides nat |
ural flowers quantities of species of ever |
lasting white pinks are used. These flowers |
come from Africa and are called Cape |
flowers" also wrath flowers" They re- |
Semble III shape double carnation pink, and |
are graceful, ghost-like blossoms They are |
regarded as lucky emblems, messages from |
the spirits, and are rather joyous garniture |
than otherwise, since they are symbolic of |
nope. Another floral extravaganza is in the |
form Of composition-Chin flowers made
up INTO wreaths, crosses, anchors ETC., which
are preserved under raised glass cases, and |
placed Oh the mound in the cemetery This
mound is raised up squarely like low bed,
with the headstone or monument at the |
head of the Same.
The funeral hearse is either open at the
Siue9 ana ends, or it is closed in quite dark
purhg the last year or two, few hearses
nave made their appearance with glass
SIDES. These are called American funeral
carriages" but they are not popular
Inc hearse is ornamented with huge
waving plumes of coal black. The horses
are Jet black and have tails sweep
ing nearly to the ground They also
nave long, full names, which the passing
breeze during their slow, measured
Stepping blows lightly about. The largest
ana handsomest horses are devoted to
funeral travel, both for hearses and mourn
ers carriages, and livery men there are who
Keep nothing else in readiness These horses
nave 10 be broken and trained as laboriously
a though for ring riding in a circus Their
drivers sit very high up with black velvet
pau across their throne-like perches. Their
Grape weepers flow down their backs from
phe 10 two yards from their hats The
horses heads are decorated with nodding
plumes. The 'mutesn walk behind the
hearse
! 40 see an English funeral crawl solemnly
c az III the street is quite an imposing specta-
SIe' The Continental custom of the passeI-
W uhcoyering his head prevails here some
, "uqV' There is, however, perceptible
t iuan and reverence apparent II is Gus
U'oliiiiaary to send funeral cards either of
LOO sovl hcatlon of death or of funeral invita-
t,ioh, or of both. These cards are black
ESo o and are often got up very ella